ABOUT US

karmaNICA is a nonprofit organization established to create an educational and nurturing environment for the underprivileged children of the rural Nicaragua. Our focus is on establishing resources for their basic needs, educational supplies as well as mentoring and monitoring for their successful long-term growth. This initiative is designed to provide the children with an optimal environment for learning, stimulating activities, needed materials, fun activities as well as engage and empower their parents and community leaders to be a part of the collective journey towards sustainability and life long education.

WE FOCUS ON THREE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES TO CREATE A BRIGHTER FUTURE FOR THE CHILDREN IN NICARAGUA:

GIVE

We provide finances, time and hands-on
assistance toward the projects of which we
are dedicating our efforts

SHARE

By sharing our message, we bring a focus and empowerment to the kids in Nicaragua.

RECEIVE

By giving and sharing, we are able to receive the greatest fulfillment in establishing a lifetime of hope to the challenged and humble children and their families in rural Nicaragua.

In 2005, Adrienne Ward decided to leave corporate America to embark on a new career related to Yoga. Her studies began with an intensive two-month stay at the world-renowned Kripalu Yoga Center in Massachusetts and she went on to achieve her Interdisciplinary Yoga Certification in Nosara, Costa Rica. In 2006, she visited Nicaragua for the first time and in 2007, established www.bigworldsmallplanet.com a yoga retreat company that develops and facilitates yoga retreats solely in Nicaragua at upscale properties all over the country. Through her years of living in Nicaragua, Adrienne had many opportunities to interact with children in need, particularly in very rural areas. With a deep desire to enrich the lives of Nica kids, Adrienne, along with Peter Sterios co-founded karmaNICA, a non-profit organization focused on supporting underprivileged children in rural impoverished communities in Nicaragua. Adrienne now resides in Encinitas, CA yet spends a great deal of time in Nicaragua staying connected with her favorite country and always searching for new opportunities where karmaNICA can make an impact.

Peter Sterios has been part of the American yoga community for over three decades and is an internationally recognized teacher based in San Luis Obispo, California. His popular video Gravity & Grace, was honored by Yoga Journal in their top 15 yoga DVDs of all time (2008). He is the creator of Manduka, a leading eco-yoga products company based in LA (1997). Peter is a writer, with articles appearing in Yoga Journal, Elephant Journal, Fit Yoga, and LA Yoga; an award winning green architect, specializing in retreat centers and yoga studios nationally and internationally; and co-founder of karmaNICA, a charitable organization for impoverished kids in western Nicaragua (www.karmanica.org). For the last three years, he was in a select group invited to teach yoga at the White House for Michelle Obama’s anti-obesity initiative. Peter’s teaching offers a unique insight to the evolving art of yoga, and his light-handed approach makes this accessible to any with a desire to learn.

JOIN OUR KARMANICA COMMUNITY

Help us to build a better, brighter future for our karmaNICA kids!

Join us in Nicaragua! We invite you to our annual yoga retreat hosted by our Co-Founder, Peter Sterios with all of the proceeds going directly to karmaNICA.This 6-day retreat explores the beauty of Nicaragua, while giving you time away from the pace of everyday life to enjoy some of the most beautiful landscapes and cultures in the world.Reach out through www.bigworldsmallplanet.com for more info and registration.

If you are planning on visiting Nicaragua, we would love to coordinate any time youmay have available on your trip to utilize your talents in teaching classes to the kids whether they be art, education or fitness related.